XPost: bc.politics, van.general, vic.general   
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   __________________________________________   
   March 13, 2013   
      
   B.C. Auditor-General knocks legislature's 'culture of entitlement'   
      
   Liberal MLA's spending on office renovation raises concerns about use of   
   public funds without scrutiny   
      
   British Columbia's outgoing Auditor-General John Doyle has made one last   
   push for reform of the way the provincial legislature conducts its   
   business, saying it is time to change the "culture of entitlement" that   
   permeates the decisions made by MLAs about spending on MLAs.   
      
   And in a report released Wednesday, Mr. Doyle took aim at several   
   special deals for legislative officers, as well as at one Liberal MLA's   
   questionable spending on a renovation to his constituency office.   
      
   But overall, Mr. Doyle, who will end his six-year term in May, said the   
   Legislative Assembly's bipartisan management committee has done a poor   
   job of handling its $75-million annual budget to provide for elected   
   officials and their upkeep in Victoria and in their constituencies.   
      
   "It is quite clear to me there is a culture of entitlement and an   
   inappropriate inattention to proper management process that has been   
   within the Legislative Assembly for a considerable period of time," Mr.   
   Doyle told reporters after the release of his report.   
      
   Although he acknowledged some recent efforts to open up the   
   traditionally secretive operations of the committee, he said it is still   
   far from fixed.   
      
   "They need to get into the real world and discharge their duties," he   
   said, "and ensure every aspect of what they do is beyond reproach."   
      
   As the government's watchdog on public spending, Mr. Doyle has chalked   
   up many confrontations with the B.C. Liberal government and is leaving   
   after the government rejected his bid for a second term.   
      
   The report, which follows up on a previous critical examination of the   
   financial records of the Legislative Assembly, highlighted two main   
   areas of concern.   
      
   Mr. Doyle was critical of a $67,000 payment for renovations to a leased   
   office for Liberal MLA Eric Foster, who chaired the committee that   
   rejected his reappointment.   
      
   Mr. Foster is repaying the funds out of his $119,000-per-year budget to   
   run his constituency office, but Mr. Doyle said the case raised   
   significant concerns about spending of public funds without scrutiny.   
      
   The audit found that Mr. Foster's landlord – who is related to his   
   constituency assistant – charged taxpayers for a new furnace and wiring   
   system and other major building upgrades. "These invoices indicate that   
   the Legislative Assembly has reimbursed the landlord for a complete   
   renovation of this building and not just the mere customization of a   
   pre-existing space."   
      
   Mr. Foster, the MLA for Vernon-Monashee, told reporters Wednesday he has   
   nothing to apologize for. He said he wasn't involved in the financial   
   details. "A third of the [MLAs] here pay more rent than I do, so why I   
   was singled out, I don't know. I was fresh into this, I had no idea how   
   this worked. And this was the way it was worked out."   
      
   The audit also uncovered a special "retirement allowance program" that   
   had been in place since the 1980s for senior officers of the   
   legislature. The deal was axed a year ago, but not before one last round   
   of tax-free payments totalling $660,000 to six officials. Those   
   "unusual" payments were not publicly disclosed.   
      
   John Horgan, the NDP House Leader, said the report reflects badly on the   
   legislature. "That's the pity here. We've had two years where this   
   institution has been dragged through the mud as a result of secrecy and   
   a lack of transparency," he said. "I'm hopeful the new parliament after   
   the election will have a new group of MLAs who are committed to cleaning   
   this place up, and letting some sunshine in and demonstrating to the   
   public this is a useful place to send people to do the public's business."   
      
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